The present paper divides the generally recognized Xianbei tombs into five groups. The first group is in the Hailar River valley; the second group, in the West Liaohe River valley; the third group, in the Chaoyang area; the fourth group, along the boundary between Inner Mongolia and Shanxi; and the fifth group, in northern Shanxi, middle Inner Mongolia and the zone a little west of them. In cul...

Monumental tombs within ancient civilizations worldwide hold precious clues for deciphering the architectural skill, acumen, and industry of prehistoric cultures. Most tombs were constructed from abiotic materials-stone, soil, and/or clay, predominately-and were built to permanently inter royalty or high-status individuals. On the island of Kosrae in the central Pacific, monumental tombs were c...

From the pyramids of Giza to the tombs of Thebes (modern Luxor), ancient Egypt’s glorious history has produced remarkable architecture. Sadly, the nearly four million yearly tourists have taken a heavy toll on many of these ancient structures. Of particular concern are many of the tombs located opposite to Luxor on the western bank of the Nile. Digital reconstruction of these tombs has the pote...

The Etruscan civilisation originated in the Villanovan Iron Age in the ninth century BC and was absorbed by Rome in the first century BC. Etruscan tombs, many of which are subterranean, are one of the best representations of this culture. The principal importance of these tombs, however, lies in the wall paintings and in the tradition of rich burial, which was unique in the Mediterranean Basin,...

Since 2002 the Kenchreai Cemetery Project has explored subterranean chamber tombs of Roman date in the main cemetery of the ancient port of Kenchreai, on the eastern coast of the Isthmus of Corinth, Greece. Analysis of the human remains recovered from three tombs has furnished evidence for cremation as well as inhumation. The cremated remains represent both adults and immature individuals. Fore...

The prehistoric stone funerary monuments of the Sahara desert, distributed in a huge geographical area, had been created in several different shapes. Some of them have a design that looks like a keyhole, and therefore are known as keyhole tombs. Since they are facing the sunrise, these tombs were also considered as places for the worship of the sun. In this paper, we show that one of them, in A...

Monumental tombs are among the most important monuments of contemporary Iran; they have become the symbol of different cities over time and attracted the attention of the audiences with various tastes. This study tries to explain the architectural components that affect the durability of these buildings and answers these questions: What are the architectural components of the emergence of form ...

It is demonstrated that palynomorphs can occur in fired ancient potsherds when the firing temperature was under 350°C. Pollen and phytoliths recovered from incompletely fired and fully fired potsherds (ca. 2700 yrs BP) from the Yanghai Tombs, Turpan, Xinjiang, NW China can be used as potential indicators for reconstructing past vegetation and corresponding climate in the area. The results show ...